Collection of draft grades

from blog.stlouisrams.com

Draft Grades Are In
Posted by nickwagoner on May 2, 2011 – 3:48 PM

- For those of you who follow From the Sidelines and this site in general, you already know that I won’t be making any outrageous proclamations in the days following the draft. In fact, the only exercise more fruitless than the mock drafts that we all do before the draft are the grades that are handed out in the days after the draft. No matter what you read about this draft or what you think about the Rams’ draft or any other teams, the fact of the matter is you don’t KNOW anything.

- So, while I will refrain from offering anything other than some analysis of how the Rams’ eight additions fit on the roster and speculate on how they might contribute in year one, I now offer you a run down of what some of the draft analysts around the web are saying about how the Rams fared…

- Pete Prisco, CBSSports.com – Prisco said that he loved the pick of DE Robert Quinn in the first round. Also liked the selection of Hawaii WR Greg Salas. His overall analysis…”They addressed a need with Quinn and then spent the next three picks getting Sam Bradford some help. The draft made sense.”
Grade: B

- Kerry Byrne, SI.com – Called the future of the Rams’ defensive line “potentially devastating” with the addition of Quinn. Said he would have liked to see the Rams grab a running back and an offensive lineman or the grade would have been higher.
Grade: B-

- Mel Kiper, Jr. ESPN.com – Liked that the Rams added a lot of weapons and said the Rams look like a franchise “ready to take that next step.” Liked the Quinn choice and praised the effort to add weapons in Salas, Austin Pettis and Lance Kendricks for QB Sam Bradford.
Needs: A- Value: B- Overall: B

- Todd McShay, ESPN.com – Did not offer a grade but says the Rams’ best move was adding Salas with the 112th pick in the draft. Said he would’ve preferred the Rams went with a receiver other than Pettis in the third round.

- Jarrett Bell, USA Today – Bell offered this analysis of the Rams’ picks: “With both of the premier WRs gone, the Rams opted for a defensive playmaker with DE Robert Quinn. They landed new targets in the form of TE Lance Kendricks and WRs Austin Pettis and Salas. Pettis isn’t a blazer, but has two traits that QBs love: sure hands and production (39 TDs).”
Grade: B-

- Clifton Brown, The SportingNews.com – Brown also gave the Rams a B, saying “Two wide receiver prospects to help quarterback Sam Bradford, plus a pass-rushing defensive end in Robert Quinn made it a good weekend.”
Grade: B

- Jason Cole, Yahoo! Sports - Liked the value the Rams got in Quinn at No. 14 and was pleased with the fact that the Rams made such a concerted effort to add talent for Bradford and the offense to work with right away.
Grade: A

- Rick Gosselin, Dallas Morning News – Also raved about the value of getting Quinn at 14 in the draft and the addition of value receivers Pettis and Salas in rounds three and four.
Grade: B

- Nolan Nawrocki, Pro Football Weekly – Says the Rams addressed all major needs with the exception of a backup running back and upgraded their speed off the edge with Quinn. Likes the reliability of Kendricks, Pettis and Salas and says the Rams did well for depth and special teams late in the draft. Went so far as to say Hines and Nelson both have “starter” potential. His overall summation: “The Rams easily could come away with three starters, potentially five, and upgraded special teams.”
Grade: A

- So there you have it. I’m sure more will be released in the next few days but really, none of this will matter until about three years from now when we can truly look back and see how these players developed.

Overview: It's disturbing that G.M. Billy Devaney yet again refused to draft a running back with Steven Jackson on the decline. The Rams went with positional need -- theoretically -- over value when they selected Kendricks instead of Mikel Leshoure at No. 47. Kendricks well may have been available at 78, and the same goes for Pettis at No. 112. While Quinn was one of the better picks in round one (he was a top-five player on at least one draft board), Devaney's way of addressing his weakest spots was seemingly to toss multiple uninspiring picks at the positions. The Rams got one good pass rusher in this draft. We're not sure they improved in any other area.

Re: Collection of draft grades

Re: Collection of draft grades

Walterfootball's grade:

St. Louis' goal in the 2011 NFL Draft was to find as much help for Sam Bradford as possible. A job well done, for the most part.

Lance Kendricks, Austin Pettis and Greg Salas are all quality weapons that Bradford could turn into fantasy studs. However, I would have liked to have seen St. Louis find an upgrade on the offensive line, namely at guard. There were players at that position for the taking in Rounds 3 and 4, but the Rams passed on them. Maybe they have their eye on someone in free agency.

Meanwhile, the Robert Quinn selection was awesome. St. Louis' pass rush was already really good. It's scary to think what Steve Spagnuolo can do with a talent like Quinn across from the underrated Chris Long.

Re: Collection of draft grades

profootballtalk's grade

Incomplete, for every team.

We (or at least I) say it every year at this time. There’s no way of knowing who had a good draft or a bad draft until we find out whether the draft picks become great players — and whether the players presumed to be great become busts. Of course, that doesn’t stop folks (like Rosenthal and Silva) from feeling compelled to apply a meaningless letter grade months before the answer key to the test has been determined.

We don’t blame them for it. As long as fans will read columns regarding draft grades, folks will keep writing them.

Re: Collection of draft grades

Re: Collection of draft grades

They went with receivers with great hands and looking at a few games last year, was what really stood out was dropped catches, Bradfords accurate enough to get the ball where it needs to be but the guys just werent catching them, speed is not the be all and end all of a wr, creating seperation and having good hands have almost nothing to do with a fast 40 time. I must say there was not 1 single player drafted that i picked and in almost all cases wasnt on my radar at all.

Quinn was a great pick, i wanted Fairley though but went 1 pick before.

The later picks i have no opinion on, but looks good that they got guys with great upside.

Draft B

It got a B because they didn't address RB but if they get a good RB in FA all is gravy.

WR depth chart is going to be most interesting position in the offseason but the longer the lockout, the better chances are for the incumbents.